Imagination

I recently read a quote about running that helps put words to a big part of why I run:

 "Bernd Heinrich, Ph.D.... agrees we were born to run. But the secret, he argues, is not that we can trot along under a hot sun. No, the genius lies in our ability to visualize-- to imagine-- that such activity might lead to an important goal. We don't run primarily because we can, or because it feels good, though both might be true. Rather we were born to run with imagination and purpose. Paleoithic runners pursued antelope with visions of a steak dinner. Today we run to score a soccer goal... To finish a 5-K and then maybe a half-marathon. To raise funds for good causes. We run long amd persistent, hoping to one day complete 26.2 miles... Our imagination is our greatest human talent. Our imagination and our optimism." -- Amby Burfoot, "Just Imagine," Runner's World  

I find purpose in running for Taller de Jose, and, for me, the beauty is that Taller is a place that inspires that imagination and optimism in others; we strive to encourage our clients to imagine a future better than the present they're living in and show them they have the support they need to realize those hopes. Most often, as in the case of my client Aurelia, they already have the capability of imagining, and it just takes a listening ear or gentle reassurance to show them they are capable of tackling the obstacles in front of them. 

For about a year now, I've been working with Aurelia, who is in the process of applying for the UVisa. This is a special immigration visa granted to individuals who are victims of violent crimes and who have cooperated with police officers and other law enforcement. The idea is to encourage members of immigrant communities to report crimes and assist in their prosecution; often, individuals fear going to the police because of language barriers, and more significantly, they worry they or their loved ones with be deported. Thus, problems like domestic violence are rampant yet rarely spoken about in neighborhoods like Little Village. 

Before I met her, Aurelia made the brave step of calling the police after suffering years of abuse. She was still confronting the emotional turmoil that comes with being responsible for the arrest of a loved one, no matter how much pain that loved one caused. But because she had a 5-year-old daughter to provide for, her focus had been one of survival, not coping with her loss and confusion. In order to apply for the UVisa, she needed to re-live the abuse over and over, both in writing her personal testimony and by attending frequent court dates to serve as a witness in the case against her abuser. I connected her with a counselor to help with the testimony, but attending the court dates was even more stressful because it meant facing her abuser and his family, who blamed her for calling the police. I attended each court date with her (the process was over 6 months long), and each time we walked away with the case unresolved, she would express desperation, questioning whether she was doing the right thing. I always let her know that the decision to return to court was hers alone, but that if she chose to go, she wouldn't be there alone. In the end, she did follow through to see the case to its conclusion, and her participation was an essential part of both the prosecution's case and her immigration application. 

She is still in the process of applying for the UVisa, so there's a long road ahead of her, but I can see her determination and hope that it will all be worth it; and for as long as she needs it, I'll be there, not as the director, but as a supporting actress. And hers is just one of many, many stories I could share. I feel honored to bear witness to my client's stories of hope and persistence, of imagination in the midst of great suffering, and it is those feelings of gratitude and inspiration that give purpose to my training.